THIS IS NOT SLASH. This is OOC.
I own nothing except the plot.

THIS IS A CONTINUATION OF MY ONE SHOT, I'll Die to Save You, so you might want to read that to understand what happened to Percy before reading this. I know that the concept of Zeus and Percy interacting is odd, and I want it to be that way.

Chapter One:

You rap on the door to his apartment. Your burly hands knock roughly against the door, feeling the wood crack and slightly sway on its most likely rusted hinges. You grow tired of your fruitless attempt at being courteous. He refuses to open the door, and so you know that you must force your way in.

Almost inconspicuously, you form a tiny sphere of tangible electricity in your hand, wrapping that same hand around the doorknob and uncaringly shoving the door open. There isn't a creaking noise like you expect. Instead, the door clangs heavily against the frightfully unattractive walls. You survey the living area of his apartment, and you're absolutely stunned. You're surprised that the appearance of the inside is much nicer than what's portrayed on the outside.

"Surely, I imagined that Perseus would be messier than this…" you mumble to yourself as you stare over the pristine countertops, spotless floor, and fluffy couches and chairs. You're surprised that you bothered to drudge up enough care and willpower to teleport yourself to the hero of Olympus's grungy apartment in upper Manhattan.

You smirk to yourself when you come upon a closet door closed with bits and pieces of what's seemingly metal peeking out through the crack at the bottom, but you know better than that. It's celestial bronze. Your hand twists the knob curiously, wanting to see what other weapons young Perseus has other than his shield and faithful sword, Anaklusmos.

You find shelves of bagged drachmas, mortal money, jars of nectar, and containers filled with perfectly cut squares of ambrosia. Your eyes rake over the countless daggers and other swords Perseus has along with a shoebox holding his Minotaur horn. Before you leave, you find yourself flipping over a wallet sized photo of Perseus and Athena's daughter—Annabeth was her name?—staring intensely at each other.

You know of their relationship; the boy had refused immortality for her. A year later, neither has been killed, and their bond is still oddly composed of two love-struck teenagers with personalities on opposite ends of a spectrum.

You shut the door abruptly, and a thought crosses your mind: has Perseus not noticed me yet?

You distinctly remember seeing the keys to his stepfather—Paul's—Prius. You commend yourself for remembering these mortals' names. Nevertheless, after transporting yourself into the cubby hole that was to pose as Percy's garage, you discovered that his car and other means of transportation are still idling in the dark.

Another door is slightly ajar, and you're interested in what's inside of the room. Maybe Perseus is out on a walk. After all, you're a god, and a mere mortal—no matter how important he is—would take offence at you taking a peek in his room.

You scratch your short beard and continue to walk towards the door. When you approach it, you push the door open, and you don't believe what you're seeing now.

Perseus is draped across his mattress, fully clothed, but sweat soaking his body. You atypically rush over to him, making the mattress to rise a bit so you don't have to hunch over. The boy's complexion matches his walls—pale and fragile. You barely feel him breathing, and when he does, it is small gasps that look extremely painful for him.

Instead of inspecting his room, you place your hand on his torso and transport you both to the throne room of Olympus. You thank Gaea that no one else is occupying the room to see you showing concern over your rival/brother's son.

Perseus's breaths are raspy, and if possible, he grows more pallid and another layer of perspiration begins to form. You instantly make a blanket appear to cover him.

"Apollo!" you say with an unheard urgency in your voice. The sun god appears within the blink of an eye, his smile failing miserably to illuminate the dismal blanket in the room. Apollo's grin drops uncharacteristically as he rushes to your side and stares at the limp and pallid complexion of Poseidon's son.

You exclaim with a furrow in your brow and thunder resonating all around Olympus, "It is Perseus; he is dying."

What did you think? I'm going to explain why Zeus was at Percy's apartment in the following chapters. I hope this drew you in! :)

Thank you so much for reading.

Until the next update,

Jia :]